Slovene Union

Last updated
Slovene Union
Slovenska skupnost
Leader Peter Močnik
Founded1963
HeadquartersVia G. Gallina 5/III, Trieste
NewspaperSkupnost
Ideology Slovene-speaking minority interests
Christian democracy
Political position Centre
National affiliation Centre-left coalition
Autonomies and Environment Pact
European affiliation European Free Alliance
Regional Council of Friuli-Venezia Giulia
1 / 48
(In the Democratic Party)
Website
www.slovenskaskupnost.org

The Slovene Union (Slovene : Slovenska skupnost, SSk, Italian : Unione Slovena, US) is a political party in Italy representing the Slovene minority in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region. [1] Its Slovene name means literally "Slovene Community", but the denomination "Slovene Union" is used in other languages.

Contents

The party was founded in the 1960s to represent the anti-communist Slovenes in the Italian Julian March (provinces of Trieste and Gorizia). It the 1970s and 1980s, it extended its presence also to Venetian Slovenia and Canale Valley in the Province of Udine. It has been considered to be close to the Catholic Church and has drawn its support from various Slovene Catholic institutions in Italy, such as the Hermagoras Society and the Council of Slovene Organizations.

Since 2007, the SSk is affiliated to the Democratic Party (PD). The relation between the two parties is regulated by an "agreement of federation", which guarantees the full autonomy of the SSk. [2]

History

The SSk was founded in 1962 with the merger of several Slovene anti-communist political organizations that had functioned since 1945 in the Italian part of the Julian March (Venezia Giulia), that is in the provinces Gorizia and Trieste (until 1954 Zone A of the Free Territory of Trieste). These organizations included the Slovene Christian Social Union (Slovenska krščansko socialna zveza, SKSZ), led by Engelbert Besednjak and Avgust Sfiligoj; the liberal Slovene Democratic Union (Slovenska demokratska zveza, SDZ), led by Josip Agneletto and Andrej Uršič; and the social-democratic Group of Independent Slovenes (Skupina neodvisnih Slovencev, SNS), led by Josip Ferfolja, Frane Tončič and Dušan Rybář. All these groups shared an anti-fascist ideology, they were opposed to Italian nationalism and centralism, as well as to the Communist regime of the nearby Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Coming from different ideological background, but sharing similar programs, these groups soon established a close collaboration, creating many joint lists in municipal and provincial elections. Between 1947 and 1954, a unitary action was hindered by the fact that the Slovene minority was split into two separate political realities, one in the Republic of Italy and the other in the Free Territory of Trieste.

The SSk has taken part in nearly all general, regional and municipal elections in Friuli-Venezia Giulia since the 1963 general election. Beginning from the late 1960s, it frequently formed alliances with Christian Democracy. Since its foundation, the SSk has maintained close relations with the South Tyrolean People's Party and the Valdostan Union. In the 1992 general election the SSk formed a joint list with the Valdostan Union, the Union for South Tyrol, the Sardinian Action Party, and some smaller regional parties; this effort produced a seat in the Chamber of Deputies and one in the Senate of the Republic, but none of them was for the SSk.

Since the beginning of the so-called Italian Second Republic, the SSk has been in alliance with centre-left coalitions, such as The Olive Tree, and had been an associate party of the Italian People's Party, Democracy is Freedom – The Daisy, and finally the Democratic Party.

The party has been represented in the Regional Council from 1975 through 1993, and then again since 2003. In the 2013 regional election the SSk won 1.4% of the vote (4.7% in the Province of Trieste and 2.8% in the Province of Gorizia), resulting in the re-election of its regional councillor. [3]

The party is particularly strong in rural areas on the border with Slovenia in the Provinces of Trieste and Gorizia. In the 2013 regional election it was the most voted party in the municipalities of Monrupino (55.9%), San Floriano del Collio (53.1%) and Savogna d'Isonzo (42.0%), and had a good showing also in San Dorligo della Valle (22.5%), Sgonico (22.2%), Doberdò del Lago (19.8%) and Duino-Aurisina (17.1%). Since the 2000s, the party has gathered some support also in the Province of Udine, especially in the so-called Venetian Slovenia: in 2013 it garnered 19.4% of the vote in Drenchia, 10.8% in Malborghetto Valbruna, and 7.5% in Resia. In big cities, the party reached 5.3% in Gorizia and 3.2% in Trieste. In the municipal and provincial elections of 2011, the candidates of the Slovene Union ran on the list of the Democratic Party, except for the Provincial Council of Trieste, where they ran separately and gained 3.4% of the vote. [4]

Media

The party has an official newspaper, called Skupnost ("Community"). The weekly journal Novi glas ("The New Voice"), published in Gorizia by the Hermagoras Society is also generally supportive of the party's program, policies and ideology, although it is sometimes critical towards its actions.

Prominent members

Several public figures of the Slovene minority in Italy have been public supporters of the Slovene Union, including the authors Boris Pahor and Alojz Rebula, historian Jože Pirjevec, journalist, editor and historian Ivo Jevnikar and others.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Friuli-Venezia Giulia</span> Autonomous region of Italy

Friuli-Venezia Giulia is one of the 20 regions of Italy and one of five autonomous regions with special statute. The regional capital is Trieste on the Gulf of Trieste, a bay of the Adriatic Sea.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northeast Italy</span> Geographic region of Italy


Northeast Italy is one of the five official statistical regions of Italy used by the National Institute of Statistics (ISTAT), a first level NUTS region and a European Parliament constituency. Northeast encompasses four of the country's 20 regions:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Province of Udine</span> Province of Italy

The province of Udine was a province in the autonomous Friuli-Venezia Giulia region of Italy, bordering Austria and Slovenia, with the capital in the city of Udine. Abolished on 30 September 2017, it was reestablished in 2019 as the Regional decentralization entity of Udine, and was reactivated on 1 July 2020. It has a population of 530,849 inhabitants over an area of 4,907.24 square kilometres (1,894.70 sq mi).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Julian March</span> Historical region in Croatia, Italy, and Slovenia

The Julian March, also called Julian Venetia, is an area of southern Central Europe which is currently divided among Croatia, Italy, and Slovenia. The term was coined in 1863 by the Italian linguist Graziadio Isaia Ascoli, a native of the area, to demonstrate that the Austrian Littoral, Veneto, Friuli, and Trentino shared a common Italian linguistic identity. Ascoli emphasized the Augustan partition of Roman Italy at the beginning of the Empire, when Venetia et Histria was Regio X.

Scoutingin Slovenia is served by three associations:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Slovenian Catholic Girl Guides and Boy Scouts Association</span>

Slovenian Catholic Girl Guides and Boy Scouts Association is the national Guiding organization of Slovenia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Triveneto</span>

The Triveneto or Tre Venezie, also often referred to as North-Eastern Italy or simply North-East, is a historical region of Italy. The area is made up of the three smaller historical regions of Venezia Euganea, Venezia Giulia and Venezia Tridentina. This territory was named after the Roman region of Venetia et Histria.

Drenchia is a comune (municipality) in the Regional decentralization entity of Udine in the Italian region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, located about 60 kilometres (37 mi) north of Trieste and about 35 kilometres (22 mi) northeast of Udine, on the border with Slovenia. Drenchia is located on the western slopes of the Kolovrat Range, dividing Italy from Slovenia, and borders the following municipalities: Grimacco, Kanal ob Soči (Slovenia), Kobarid (Slovenia), and Tolmin (Slovenia).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Doberdò del Lago</span> Comune in Friuli Venezia Giulia, Italy

Doberdò del Lago is a comune (municipality) in the Regional decentralization entity of Gorizia in the Italian region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, located about 30 kilometres (19 mi) northwest of Trieste and about 11 kilometres (7 mi) southwest of Gorizia, and borders the following municipalities: Duino-Aurisina, Fogliano Redipuglia, Komen (Slovenia), Miren-Kostanjevica (Slovenia), Monfalcone, Ronchi dei Legionari, Sagrado, and Savogna d'Isonzo. It is located in the westernmost part of the Karst Plateau.

Sagrado is a comune (municipality) in the Regional decentralization entity of Gorizia in the Italian region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, located about 35 kilometres (22 mi) northwest of Trieste and about 13 kilometres (8 mi) southwest of Gorizia, on the left bank of the Isonzo River.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Monrupino</span> Comune in Friuli Venezia Giulia, Italy

Monrupino is a comune (municipality) in the Regional decentralization entity of Trieste in the Italian region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, located about 9 kilometres (5.6 mi) north of Trieste, on the border with Slovenia. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 848 and an area of 12.7 square kilometres (4.9 sq mi). According to the 1971 census, 77.3% of the population are Slovenes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1978 Friuli-Venezia Giulia regional election</span>

The 1978 Friuli-Venezia Giulia regional election took place on 25 June 1978.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Darko Bratina</span>

Darko Bratina was an Italian sociologist, film theorist and politician of Slovene ethnicity. Between 1992 and 1997, he served as member of the Italian Senate.

Slovene minority in Italy, also known as Slovenes in Italy is the name given to Italian citizens who belong to the autochthonous Slovene ethnic and linguistic minority living in the Italian autonomous region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia. The vast majority of members of the Slovene ethnic minority live in the Provinces of Trieste, Gorizia, and Udine. Estimates of their number vary significantly; the official figures show 52,194 Slovenian speakers in Friuli-Venezia Giulia, as per the 1971 census, but Slovenian estimates speak of 83,000 to 100,000 people.

Citizens is a centrist Italian civic list active in Friuli-Venezia Giulia since 2003. The list is the expression of the cultural and political association "Una Regione in Comune".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2013 Friuli-Venezia Giulia regional election</span>

The 2013 Friuli-Venezia Giulia regional election took place on 21–22 April 2013 in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region of Italy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Slavia Friulana</span> Mountain region in northeastern Italy

Slavia Friulana, which means Friulian Slavia, is a small mountainous region in northeastern Italy and it is so called because of its Slavic population which settled here in the 8th century AD. The territory is located in the Italian region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, between the town of Cividale del Friuli and the Slovenian border.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Responsible Autonomy</span> Italian political party

Responsible Autonomy is a centrist to centre-right political party active in Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pact for Autonomy</span> Political party in Italy

The Pact for Autonomy is a regionalist and social-liberal political party in Friuli-Venezia Giulia that aims to defend the regional autonomy and protect all linguistic minorities present in the region. Its leaders have been Sergio Cecotti and Massimo Moretuzzo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sergio Cecotti</span> Italian politician and physicist

Sergio Cecotti is an Italian politician, former Mayor of Udine and former President of Friuli-Venezia Giulia.

References

  1. ↑ Nordsieck, Wolfram (2018). "Friuli-Venezia Guilia/Italy". Parties and Elections in Europe.
  2. ↑ "De?elna svetovalska skupina PD". Archived from the original on April 25, 2011. Retrieved May 16, 2011.
  3. ↑ Regione Autonoma Friuli-Venezia Giulia – Elezioni 2008 Archived 2008-05-15 at the Wayback Machine
  4. ↑ "Elezioni Amministrative del 15 e 16 maggio 2011 - Provinciali - Risultati - Regione Autonoma Friuli-Venezia Giulia". Archived from the original on 2011-05-18. Retrieved 2011-05-16.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.